Shoulder cord



J1me 1959 A. E. Du .Bols ETAL 2, 88,

SHOULDER CORD Filed Dec. 4. 19 52 INVENTORS 51136268116 Will AND ArtkurE.DuBois w United States Patent SHOUEDER conn- Arthur-E..Du;Bois.and Elizahemwnrwa mn gon,11.6.,

assignors to the Unitedsstates. of. America. asvrepresented by theSecretar-y'of'tlie Army Application December. 4,;1952 1SlittltNb. 3231,15?!

2 Claims. (CI. 12-93) (Granted under Title 35, US. Code (1952), see. 266) The invention described herein, if patented, may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to us of any royalty thereon.

Our invention relates to shoulder cords of the type worn with uniform coats or the like to designate honors or for decoration.

Such cords usually comprise a closed loop of ornamental character throughout its length which is passed under the shoulder strap, epaulet or the like of the coat and beneath the arm of the wearer. Frequently, the ornamentation takes the form of a succession of knots which cause chafing in the underarm area and also bulge the shoulder straps upwardly in an unsightly manner. Also, in such loops, the shoulder strap permits limited lateral movement and unlimited endwise movement relative to the coat.

With the foregoing in view, it is an object of our invention to provide an improved shoulder cord.

A further object is to provide in a shoulder cord, novel means for anchoring the cord against endwise and lateral movement whereby to maintain the cord in proper position relative to the coat.

A further object is to provide an improved shoulder cord which includes front and rear portions of ornamental construction and upper and underarm portions of diflFerent construction connecting said front and rear portions together.

A further object is to provide in such an improved shoulder cord, a construction of substantially less bulk in the upper and underarm portions than in the ornamental front and rear portions.

Other objects and advantages reside in the particular structure of the cord, the structure of the several parts thereof, combination and arrangement of such parts, and in the combination of the cord with the coat with which it is worn, all of which will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon reference to the attached drawing in connection with the following specification, wherein the invention is shown, described, and claimed.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of the coat or the like showing the cord of the invention applied thereto;

Figure 2 is an enlarged elevational view of the cord apart from the coat;

Figure 3 is an enlarged plan view of the coat shoulder showing the cord anchored in place;

Figure 4 is a schematic perspective view showing a manner of making the cord;

Figure 5 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view through the oranemental part of the cord; and

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view showing a manner of connecting the ends of the cord together.

Referring specifically to the drawing, wherein like reference characters have been used throughout the several views to designate like parts, 10 designates generally a coat, jacket-or similar garmentwhichincludes a ma t-ional epaulet. or. shoulder. strap 11. The shoulder strap;

11.is hingedly connected to anouter pOItionof. the-coat; shoulder as. atr 12 and: detachably I connected. tov the coat; shoulder. in the region. of. the coat collar by any suitable. separable fastener suchas. thebutton 13.

The shoulder cord of. the inventionis generally indicated at 14 andv comprises anupper portion 15, a v front portion 16, a:rear. portion'-17, and.anunderarmtoraarmpitt portion 18. As best seen in Figure 2, the upper portion 15 comprises a single cord of relatively short length which passes beneath the shoulder strap 11 whereby it is normally substantially concealed by the shoulder strap. The center of the upper portion 15 is provided with any suitable anchoring means such as the minor loop 20 for encircling the separable fastener 13 to maintain the cord against endwise, lateral or twisting movement relative to the coat. Obviously, the anchoring means 20 is concealed in use as clearly seen in Figures 1 and 3.

In the embodiment illustrated, the ornamental front and rear portions 16 and 17 may be formed by securing the central portion of a single cord to one end of the upper portion 15 as indicated at 21. Thereafter, the opposite ends 22 and 23 of the single cord are formed into a succession of knots 24 about the cord 15 as a core. Preferably, the knots 24 are square knots and are formed in a well known manner about the core 15, the latter preferably being under tension during the formation of the knots.

When a sufiicient number of knots have been tied to form one of the ornamental portions 16 or 17, the cord 15 and cord ends 22 and 23 are plaited together in a Well known manner to form the underarm portion 18. The other ornamental portion is now formed by tying a sucsion of knots with the cord ends 22 and 23 about the core 15. However, before this last ornamental portion is completed, the free ends of the core 15 are preferably connected together as shown in Fig. 6. Such connection may be a butt joint 25 which may be secured by stitching 26 and whipping 27.

After the joint is completed, the knotting of the cord ends 22 and 23 is continued until the second ornamental portion is completed, the knots 24 effectually concealing joint 25. At the upper end of the second ornamental portion, the cord ends 22 and 23 are trimmed, tucked in and secured beneath the completed cord in any suitable manner as by the stitching 28, Figure 2. The anchor or minor loop 20 is secured to the upper portion 15 centrally thereof in any suitable manner.

In use, the shoulder strap 11 is unbuttoned and turned back, the arm is inserted through the loop of the cord 14 with the portion 15 uppermost. Thereafter, the anchor or the like 20 is secured to the fastener 13 in a manner readily understood and the shoulder strap 11 secured in position as in Figure 1. The proportions of the several parts are such that the ornamental front and rear portions 16 and 17 are displayed While the upper portion 15 and lower portion 18 are substantially concealed in use. At the same time, the relatively flat underarm portion 18 rests flatly against the coat and prevents any substantial chafing. The anchor 20 by preventing twisting of the loop 14, maintains such flat engagement of the underarm portion 18 and also by preventing endwise movement retains the entire loop properly positioned at all times. Likewise, the slender upper portion 15 provides no unsightly bulge in the shoulder strap 11.

It will be understood that while we have shown and described what is now thought to be a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is obvious that the same is susceptible of other forms of expressions. Consequently, we do not limit ourselves to the precise structure and ar- Fatented June 2,. 1959..

aeeaeee rangernent shown and described hereinabove except as hereinafter claimed.

We claim:

1. A shoulder cord for a uniform coat or the like which includes shoulder straps or the like, comprising a relatively short and slender top portion normally disposed beneath said shoulder strap and concealed thereby, relatively long and bulky ornamental front and rear portions depending from opposite ends of said top portion, and a relatively fiat underarm portion connecting the lower ends of said front and rear portions together.

2. The structure of claim 1, wherein said top portion includes means for securing said cord to said coat.

4 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Du Bois Sept. 22, 1953 OTHER REFERENCES 

